Hardly a day goes by where we don’t see news reports about employee
theft, fraud or embezzlement, whether in a public or private company,
government agency or local municipality. Often the illegal acts go
unnoticed for months or even years. And if small and mid-size employers
believe they’re only isolated incidents in large public companies, think
again.

ELK GROVE VILLAGE — Accounting and consulting firm Porte Brown LLC, said
it will merge with Brown, Kaplan + Liss (BKL), an Evanston-based public
accounting firm that is among the largest along the north suburbs.

Do you ever stare at mind-numbing rows of historical financial data
in Excel trying to identify the source of a business problem? Do
you ever wish you could retrieve accurate, up-to-the-minute
information, instantly – and use it to ‘wow’ your customers and blow
away your competitors? If so, it’s time to consider business intelligence (BI).

Organizations make daily decisions that better adapt their organizations
to a changing external environment. These decisions revolve around four
factors: people, processes, technology and records. Leaders of the 21st
Century argue that the most salient of these factors is technology.

It’s easy to get bogged down by the day to day busyness of running
your business. When was the last time you thought about what your
business was really worth? The value of a privately-owned business is
not easy to ascertain, and as a result many business owners overlook
this important aspect of running their business.

Every day our team at Dale Carnegie meets with business owners and
discusses where they want to go, where they are at, and what is in the
way. It’s energizing work because while each client and conversation is
unique, we see common trends that businesses of all sizes share. The
following are some of the current trends that we see in the workplace.
These are the areas that every business owner should have on their radar

Proper accounting is essential for the growth and security of any
business, but the dynamics of a family-held enterprise often present
unique challenges. Gain control of your accounting - and the future of
your business - by avoiding these common pitfalls.

Tax season will be here before you know it. While few people look
forward to their annual date with the IRS, having some procedures in
place to help organize yourself can make a big difference in reducing
the time required for tax preparation. Here are a few things that you
can do now to make tax time more pleasant.